South Dakota Investment Council Has $1.16 Million Position in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

South Dakota Investment Council increased its position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 242.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,017 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 17,000 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council's holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $1,164,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CWT. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 39.7% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 255,232 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,369,000 after purchasing an additional 72,519 shares during the last quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 51.3% in the 1st quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC now owns 9,916 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 3,361 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 76.3% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,558 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 2,406 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 30,544 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,480,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. purchased a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.78% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other California Water Service Group news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.51, for a total transaction of $55,812.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 26,349 shares in the company, valued at $1,225,491.99. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

Shares of CWT traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $45.31. 76,774 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 369,912. The company has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 19.87, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.57. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $41.64 and a one year high of $56.25.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.06. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 8.32% and a net margin of 13.84%. The business had revenue of $203.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.80 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.21 earnings per share. California Water Service Group's quarterly revenue was down 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on California Water Service Group from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th.

California Water Service Group Profile

California Water Service Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in California, Washington, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Texas. The company is involved in the production, purchase, storage, treatment, testing, distribution, and sale of water for domestic, industrial, public, and irrigation uses, as well as for fire protection services.